I am right at the 250# mark in full gear and find that the Joplin I have is good for around 5-10 rides between services. That is every 2-3 weeks in the summer. I spend more time on a standard seat-post than on a dropper.

I'd love to get past that - really eyeballing the LEV - but the additional coin isn't worth it to me if reliability doesn't improve significantly.

This is an interesting topic. I have never used a dropper but have heard good things about the reverb. Currently I'm riding a 29er HT most of the time. I wouldn't consider a dropper on my Highball but I am looking at getting a full suspension trail bike (either a TRc or TallboyLT) in the next few months and was wondering if I even need it? Seems like droppers make more sense on longer travel bikes (6in+) but perhaps I'm mistaken.

This is an interesting topic. I have never used a dropper but have heard good things about the reverb. Currently I'm riding a 29er HT most of the time. I wouldn't consider a dropper on my Highball but I am looking at getting a full suspension trail bike (either a TRc or TallboyLT) in the next few months and was wondering if I even need it? Seems like droppers make more sense on longer travel bikes (6in+) but perhaps I'm mistaken.

A dropper post is awesome on any bike.
I often wish I had one on my road bike. Last time I road Mt Hamilton I dropped my post before descending the road. Sounds lame, but the improved control and lower COG is rad on any bike going downhill.
If it makes the ride more enjoyable, it's worth spending $$ on.

Originally Posted by Jayem

...People thought they were getting a good fork because it was a "fox".

Buzzcut - nice bike but you need to lose the zip ties for your cable guides. I have a Yeti 575 and I used these Jagwire cable guides. The bases are made of metal and will form to your frame. I have had them on for about a year and have not had one pop off.

Anyone tried to adapt a different remote lever to a DOSS?

I'd been running a Command Post Blacklight, which for the price was a very good post. The mechanical collet locking was totally reliable. Only had the single bolt clamp slip once, due to a miscalculated hard landing. IMO the clamp design on the Blacklight is weak.

So that bike/post is gone, with the recent Fox DOSS price drop I'm considering getting one. It's got the mechanical collet, solid 2 bolt clamp, but I can't deal with that crazy ginsu lever set up. Anyone tried a different brand/type lever? I recall seeing a KS lever on a Blacklight, the KS lever is nice, and can be purchased separately. I don't care about the dual lever function, the single lever for two drop positions on my Blacklight was fine.

Pivot actually offered them with the bike for $300 as opposed to $400. However, I'll keep the $300 and lower and raise my seat one time each at Demo. I have done rides that are more up and down and did wish I had one though. I always enjoyed them on demo bikes, except when they would freeze up.

Maybe once they get to around $200 and work better I will look into one.

1) Occasionally the collar loosens and it no longer stays in the upper most position. That requires stopping, pulling the boot up, tightening the collar a little and pulling the boot back over the collar. Seems like it always takes me a couple tries to get it adjusted right.

-slide

Have you put any loctite on the collar?

I have the GD Classic and I love it. My one complaint is that the clamp assembly is pretty crappy. I actually had a bolt snap while I wasn't even riding it, due to the amount of strain that is put on the rear bolt. I should probably just put a Thomson clamp assembly on it.

Actually my other complaint is that the switch clamp is plastic. My first one snapped during installation.

If they were to fix those two things, then the GD would be perfect.

Aesthetically, my GD actually looks good on my bike, I think, which is a custom steel frame, but I don't think they fit as well with more modern bikes.

Thanks for that input. I'm going to try lowering my saddle down 1" on technical singletrack, to see how that works. With my seat down at 2 inches, it does seem a little low. I'm going to go with the 4" down dropper, because I have gown down some steep stuff and wished my seat dropped further than 2 inches and don't think that dropping it 3" for steep stuff will be enough.

Originally Posted by morganfletcher

I'd recommend at least three-position; up, 1" down and 3" or 4" down. The 1" down position is perfect for technical single track. It makes a difference.

I did break a GD Turbo, but they repaired it. The little face that stops the cable housing on the seatpost body came unglued from the post itself, such that actuating the cable just moved the little face in the air between the post and the cable housing. Was able to zip-tie it on and finish the ride. I've also broken Reverb, Speedball, Joplin. Never broke a Hite Ride.

While I'm writing, the two-bolt clamp for seat rails on the Reverb is rock solid, and reminiscent of a Thomson. The sideways, single-bolt clamp on the Joplin & Speedball was always problematic. I went through a couple of those aluminum pieces, of various generations. It's just not a good design for a large rider who likes to ride technical terrain, and is sometimes a sloppy rider.

BTW Hey R____, I just realized I know you from my 4x4 days. Nice to see you here.

1) Occasionally the collar loosens and it no longer stays in the upper most position. That requires stopping, pulling the boot up, tightening the collar a little and pulling the boot back over the collar. Seems like it always takes me a couple tries to get it adjusted right.

2) Other minor issue is getting it to set into the middle position on the 3 position seatpost. Seems like it won't always click in right away leading to a bit of hunting up and down to get it to click in. That can be really distracting on tight singletrack with big drops on the edge of the trail.

Don't need to deal with either of those issues with the Reverb.

-slide

I've had both these issues as well. For the collar loosening, you don't need to lift the boot. You can actually tighten it while riding with boot still over the collar. I got tired of messing with it so I put some Loctite on there and haven't had an issue since.
As far as the middle position, it seems to relate to the cable. The cable is the most finicky piece as far as reliable, consistent operation. I had to find the best route with the longest bends. I also am conscious to try and not bend or kink the cable where it enters the stopper housing. Once it gets bent there, it's almost always time to just replace the cable to keep it trouble free.

All out of S**** and down to my last F***
I think I strained a pucker muscle

I've been running a Specialized Blacklite for about 8 months now. Even though I'm not a fan of Specialized as a company, the post has operated flawlessly. I ride religiously 2x per week, weigh 230, and change the post height probably 20x per ride. The only maintenance I've done is to lube the stanchion.

I don't need a dropper, but boy does it improve my riding. Being a able to set the top position at the absolute optimum height for climbing and pedaling on the flats is great. That's something I could never do prior to having a dropper.

I don't think about it much when riding. Operating the post has become mostly automatic.

A few things to consider if you are buying the Blacklite:

1) It has a 3/4 inch setback. As it happens, I needed the setback, but make sure that works with your geo.
2) This post can be purchased in 3 different drop distances - 125mm, 100mm, or 75mm. Before buying one, take the time to mark your current seatpost and manually drop it so you can determine which size is best for you. The intermediate position is 35mm down on the 125 and 100mm posts, 25mm down on the 75mm post. I'm running the 100mm. That does not sound like a lot of drop, but in seat height, it is huge.
3) The single-bolt seat mount is the only issue I have with this post. I've knocked it out of place a few times, and even with carbon paste, I have to overtorque the bolt to get it to hold.

Price.....weight.....spotty reviews......waiting to see if the upcoming Thomson wins the hearts and minds. Otherwise, I'll tough it out with my fixed post (no, I don't even have an adjustable collar on my Mojo). It's making a better rider out of this old dog, but I would like the added flexibility of being a bit more fleet of foot....or pedal....or whatever.
If I were to buy today, based on striking the right balance of the first three criteria I mentioned, it might be the KS Supernatural. I'd love a Lev, but might need to hold a charity drive to raise funds. A bit pricey here in Korea. I can only imagine that the Thomson might be a wad of cash as well. The Gravity is just plain ugly, and I need all the help I can get.
Cheers.

I can understand the price/weight concerns, but please explain on how you are becoming a better rider because you are not using a dropper post? I have heard a couple of others state this claim, but with all due respect, it sounds more like an excuse not to drop $300 on a post. Thanks!

I can understand the price/weight concerns, but please explain on how you are becoming a better rider because you are not using a dropper post? I have heard a couple of others state this claim, but with all due respect, it sounds more like an excuse not to drop $300 on a post. Thanks!

This is a valid question. I think a lot of people believe they are better riders because they can descend technical stuff with a high post. We call it 'high posting'. That is descending and cornering fast with a post jacked all the way up. It is a difficult thing to do and it does require much skill and judgement.

But it is similar to riding with narrow, 21 inch handlebars, 1.9 inch tires or a rigid fork. One can ride fast and it takes a lot of skill. But at the end of the day, it is the wrong tool for the job and it's not as safe and not as fun.

The concerns of reliability and cost are still valid. It's improving every year but it's not there yet. Think of it like a suspension fork. It adds a bit of pain to the bike system but it's good for you

I have a couple of different types on two bikes. Pluses and minuses on each, but right now on my main ride it's an original Gravity Dropper with a remote. The cable routing is silly and I broke the attachment off once and had it repaired ($15 for the service from GD).

My other is a Joplin with a trigger under the saddle. It's lighter, and you can stop it anywhere in its travel, but the saddle moves around quite a bit, and when I'm on undulating singletrack I don't care to take a hand off the bars to adjust it.

The positional demands of climbing (efficient leg extension) are completely different from the demands of descending (low center of gravity and room to flex knees over obstacles), and since you can't switch bikes at the top of the hill, I am hooked on on-the-fly saddle adjustment.

The concerns of reliability and cost are still valid. It's improving every year but it's not there yet. Think of it like a suspension fork. It adds a bit of pain to the bike system but it's good for you

fc

Reliability is really hit and miss still, and it seems to continue that way for a long time.

I rode a Reverb for a while spring this year, and it simply caused all kinds of issues.
Given that I take my bike with me when I travel, such issues are just not gonna fly. At home it would be annoying but I'd still get to ride, away from home it often means no riding.

The second reason dropper posts got a thumbs down, is that the saddle angle only fits in one position. If lowered to the max, the angle is way off.
It may not be a deal breaker, but sure not ideal.

Most of the droppers out there, have the cable attached to the top, meaning a moving cable. I simply can't see why it would be so hard to move the cable down to the seat clamp instead. In a crash, the cable is sure in harms way, when the post is lowered to the max.

Add to those issues the crazy high cost, and the limited travel (125mm on a good day), and you got why I'm currently working on a system that solves those issues (not for sale, but for my own needs, so just a hobby project).
If the dropper idea has to have a future, it would ideally have to be integrated in the frames, instead of the current solution.

I'd say the current generation, is not much good, considering to the high number of warranty issues, the cost, the lack of reliability, technology bordering Flintstone style, and a plethora of proprietary "we reinvented the hot water" solutions.

Once the bike industry gets over reinventing the hot water, and just use tried and tested industrial solutions, this can get interesting.
Till then, not really. Too much trouble.

Myself, my brother and FroRide1 have talked about dropper posts and the lack of need for them. But, it's not due to budget or price.

All three of us come from dirt bike riding/motocross. When you ride off-road motorcycles, having the seat there as a point of contact with your thighs and knees is something you rely on A LOT. So, when I ride, I like my seat to be there as an indicator. Sometimes I grab my seat with my knees a la dirt bike riding when MTB riding.

For me, it goes double with my background in BMX, too. The kids nowadays "slam" their seat, but if you watch the older riders (and that would be me) like Ryan Nyquist, the seat is up. For BMX, I also use it as an indicator, and I also use it for certain tricks (like hang-5's). Back in my youth, We would air 5', 6', 7' feet by doing "tuck-backs" on Hill jump at Calabazas. I never got "caught" or "hung up" because my seat was high.

I one time put my seat down on a descend and it felt very loosey-goosey for me. I think if I didn't come from BMX or dirt bike riding, I could get used to a low seat for descending.

Just on our ride yesterday, by brother accidentally hit the dropper post lever, and he says, "Remind me to get rid of this stupid thing..." He also says it's from dirt bike riding and motocross.

Man, this was a really f'ing lame comment. Or maybe the posts cost more in Korea. Or did you miss that part?

No, I didn't miss that part, just wanting some perspective on how it makes you a better rider. Sorry if my comment offended you. Next time, try adding something intelligent to your post so that you don't make everyone less intelligent from reading it.

This is a valid question. I think a lot of people believe they are better riders because they can descend technical stuff with a high post. We call it 'high posting'. That is descending and cornering fast with a post jacked all the way up. It is a difficult thing to do and it does require much skill and judgement.

But it is similar to riding with narrow, 21 inch handlebars, 1.9 inch tires or a rigid fork. One can ride fast and it takes a lot of skill. But at the end of the day, it is the wrong tool for the job and it's not as safe and not as fun.

The concerns of reliability and cost are still valid. It's improving every year but it's not there yet. Think of it like a suspension fork. It adds a bit of pain to the bike system but it's good for you

fc

First of all, thanks for posting the topic, Monsieur Overlord. I see the logic in all that you've said, and need to say that it's kind of like pencil and eraser versus calculator. I'm glad I've had the opportunity to learn via "high posting" just what the bike and the bike/rider combo is capable of, and you can only guess that I've learned the hard way.
I'm not so much sitting on the fence (and saving 300...actually one poster commented on the higher price here in Korea....typically that's true, but Shimano stuff is cheaper here than in Japan, in some cases...oddly), as I am sitting back (weight back!) waiting for the market to get a bit more crowded, or for kinks to be ironed out. I've spent enough on the bike, and I'm not featherweight, so I need a tough post, but also one light enough to justify me having spent a wad on carbon. I dunno...hope that makes sense. I'm no wrench.

I have tried 2 dropper posts over the years, a Maverick and a Crank Brothers. My experience was that they were prone to failure, sometimes catastrophic failure. They were heavy, cumbersome, and inconsistent. The rail adjustments were difficult to use and they couldn't secure the saddle properly. Worst, they allowed the saddle to move side to side.

I used to think dropping the seat was required for those occasional sketchy but thrilling spots. When i didn't have a dropper post I would stop ahead of those sections and using the quick release clamp, drop the seat.

Two years ago I bought a new bike and I had not yet acquired a quick release for the seatpost. On an inaugural ride I remember rolling up to a familiar steep section of trail with three nasty steep switchbacks that were part of a great mile long descent. I was just too lazy to get out my tools to adjust the seat clamp. I dropped in with my seat at full mast. To my delight, no problem. I haven't moved that seat post since. For me a dropper seat post is just unnecessary.